(Edit Post) by admin There are many out there that are preserving their own foods or are just starting and are on their way to learning the ends and outs of long term food storage. There is a lot to learn along the way and like any other endeavor you enter into it takes a …

With freezing rain on the way for tonight, central Pennsylvanians are being asked to prepare for the ice storms this kind of weather brings. That means having alternate sources of heat and methods of cooking should the power supply go out. Families are also urged to have a supply of emergency needs should an emergency arise. Today …

by CCCooper OK, you are past the point of needing to be urged to prep. You have made the decision to accept the realities and inevitabilities of what is coming down the road. You have started w/ a buying plan for additional foodstuffs, water, and some first aid items. You have a gun (or 3 …

By PillarsofSalt PillarsOfSalt.com Going into the store and buying every day commodities may seem like a task: the lines, the crowds, the coupons, and the overwhelming sense of urgency to get and get out. There’s the grocery cart pushing, finding the bargains, comparing prices between stores, and then the problem of finding exactly what you …

There are many out there that are preserving their own foods or are just starting and are on their way to learning the ends and outs of long term food storage. There is a lot to learn along the way and like any other endeavor you enter into it takes a lot of research and practice to get it all down and get it right. Processing food is a skill, that for many is handed down from generation to generation but it is also a skill that must be mastered. A mistake in re-hydrating, dehydrating, or canning food can be dangerous to those that you love as well as yourself.

I am always receiving questions asking about the different techniques, the right and proper tools to use as well as tips, tricks and the best methods to get the desired results in food preparation for short term and long term storage. The questions are many, varied, and without the right answers you can find yourself wasting a lot of time and money as well as putting yourself and those that you love in danger.

On this episode of Preparing for Life’s Storms I will be answering those questions. Questions like; How much water do I use? Does it need to be boiling or just hot or can I use cold water? How much dehydrated corn does it take to make a cup of corn? The list is long but without the right answers the results can be disastrous. So join us and listen in to have these and any other questions you may have answered. If you already process your own food or are just getting started this is a show you will not want to miss.

With freezing rain on the way for tonight, central Pennsylvanians are being asked to prepare for the ice storms this kind of weather brings. That means having alternate sources of heat and methods of cooking should the power supply go out. Families are also urged to have a supply of emergency needs should an emergency arise.

Today there will be many people buying some bottled water and some other supplies they need to survive what ever might happen should tonight. Preppers on the other hand, are all set. They don’t have to make any extra trips to the store and maybe spend money they don’t have in their budget.

Even if this storm only lasts one night and the ice melts the next day, it won’t change the fact that some are prepared and some are not. That’s the thing. You never know when something will happen. It’s better to be ready than worry.

OK, you are past the point of needing to be urged to prep. You have made the decision to accept the realities and inevitabilities of what is coming down the road. You have started w/ a buying plan for additional foodstuffs, water, and some first aid items. You have a gun (or 3 or 4) and some ammo. You understand the concept of OpSec.

(Deep Breath)

What do you do now?

I believe that mental preparedness MUST come with physical preparedness. You can’t do this half way and succeed. What you can do, is write down your goals and objectives and come up with a plan that allows you to prep within your means and reach your goals in a suitable time frame.

Now, what are some worthy goals?
Food. 3 weeks of food for 4 people. 3 weeks of water for 4 people. Calculate 2 meals per day per person and 1 gallon of water per person per day. For food, consider easily prepared items. Canned goods, pastas, ramen, food bars, energy bars, soups, etc.

OK, you get the idea. So much information is out there. Print what is important to you. Print what you don’t already know. Print to give to others and for posterity.

Self-Evaluation. Be honest. Be brutally honest. Have a loved one be brutally honest. Physical condition, mental acuity, current knowledge, current skills, obvious faults or shortcomings, strengths and weaknesses. Develop a plan to make yourself a better person; more valuable to you and your family than you are now.

Going into the store and buying every day commodities may seem like a task: the lines, the crowds, the coupons, and the overwhelming sense of urgency to get and get out. There’s the grocery cart pushing, finding the bargains, comparing prices between stores, and then the problem of finding exactly what you want. Then, there’s the taking home, the unloading, the storing, the organizing… and this is the average day shopping spree. Believe it or not, there is a lot of thought process and work that goes into every shopping trip for daily essentials.

Just like there is thought and effort that goes into grocery shopping, there is an entire thought process that goes on behind the act of storing food. A few key essential aspects can bring a bit of ease to the process of collecting and keeping beneficial and staple items of food.

First item to discuss is the type of food that is good to store. The less processed an item is, the better off you are. The more that is implemented into an item of food, the faster it will decompose and spoil. When wheat is ground, processed, and combined with multiple ingredients, it goes bad in a short matter of time. When whole wheat is safely stored in an air tight container, it can last for an extremely long time, even up to ten years.

CHAMBERSBURG, Tuesday, Feb. 1 -Interstate 81 and Route 11 speed limits have been reduced to 45 miles an hour until further notice.

The reduction does not apply to other roads in Franklin County, according to PennDOT District 8 spokesman Mike Crochunis.

For those traveling today, a similar speed limit reduction has been placed on other south central Pennsylvania highways. It covers I81 in Cumberland, Dauphin and Lebanon Counties, I83 in York, Cumberland and Dauphin Counties, I283 in Dauphin County and most other U.S. and state highways in PennDOT ‘s Section 8.

Although PennDOT are crews treating roadways around the clock, the department’s primary goal is to keep roads passable, Crochunis said.

Roads will not be completely free of ice and snow, he warned.

PennDOT will continue to treat roadways throughout the storm until precipitation stops and roads are clear.

Although PennDOT recommends not traveling during winter storms, motorists can check road conditions on more than 2,900 miles of state roads by calling 511 or visiting http://www.511PA.com.

The website is free and available 24 hours a day. It provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, average traffic speeds on urban interstates and access to more than 500 traffic cameras.

The 511 site also provides easy-to-use, color-coded winter road conditions for all interstates and other routes covered in the 511 reporting network. Regional Twitter alerts are also available on the 511PA website.